


Battle Scars

by bokayjunkie



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Future Fic, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-13
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-14 12:22:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13007679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bokayjunkie/pseuds/bokayjunkie
Summary: From a prompt I got on tumblr about William seeing Felicity's scars





	Battle Scars

**Author's Note:**

> So I got this prompt probably about a month ago and because i'm a notorious procrastinator, I wasn't able to write it until now. I don't have the exact prompt as I accidentally deleted it, but I do know it was about William and Felicity and her scars. So I hope you like it!
> 
> PS: Not beta'd so all mistakes are mine.

William didn't really take notice of it at first. Often Felicity wears tank tops that shows her back and he'll catch a glimpse of the dark spot on her shoulder, but he never really did pay it any mind. 

It did catch his attention again when they were on their family vacation in Coast City. It was when Felicity was laying on the chaise lounge in her bikini at the beach. It wasn't exactly an unusual sight as this isn't the first time they've gone on an outing that involved swimming and sun.

However, this time he did notice when his father rubbed sunscreen on his step-mother's back. He saw how his dad paid extra close attention to that dark spot on the back of her shoulder, even planting a small kiss on it.

It was then that William realizes his dad does this a lot. Not just when Felicity's back is exposed, but just in general, like it's a part of his everyday life. There would be times when they were in the kitchen in the morning, as his dad made breakfast and Felicity got her coffee with her back to him, his dad would drop a kiss on her shoulder without thinking of it. 

William never connected the two until now. His father would kiss that spot on her shoulder where there's a small discoloration on it. He didn't realize there’s a reason for it, and now he’s really curious what that spot is on her back.

Later that evening, William found his step-mother seated on one of the sofa bench out on the deck of their rented beach house, a blanket wrapped around her as she watched the sunset across the water's horizon. He held out his hand holding a cup of tea and she glances up at him in surprise and delight.

"Oh, you are so sweet." Felicity says with an appreciative smile, taking the cup from him.

William smiles at her bashfully, taking the seat next to her on the bench. 

Felicity took a sip of her tea and grimaces; which William couldn't help but chuckle at.

"You couldn't have slipped a little caffeine in there?" she pouted.

"Sorry, I wouldn't want to go against dad on that one." he says. "But he does have a point, caffeine isn't good for the baby."

She continues to pout as she rubs her round belly. "As annoying as your over-protectiveness is, it's adorable that you care so much."

"Of course, that's my little sister in there."

"You're a good big brother you know that?"

He ducks his head to hide the blush forming on his face. "You think so?"

"Well yeah." she says with an assured smile. "You're already the best son in the world. And I know how much you love your little sister."

"Auntie Thea use to tell me stories of her and dad when they were kids. She really looked up to him."

"Yeah those two were thick as thieves growing up."

"I hope I can be like that with her." he gestures to her stomach.

Felicity smiles and reaches her hand to touch his arm. "You will be. I can tell this little one already loves her big brother."

Warmth spread all over William and it makes him reminisce at how far they've all come as a family. It's been almost three years since the death of his mother and it still hurts him. But having Felicity and his Dad and even his Aunt Thea in his life, he doesn't feel so alone. It gets easier with each day, knowing he has family that will always be by his side. And now that he's gonna be a big brother, he feels like he found his home again. 

Not that his family didn't make him feel like an outsider before. But now he won’t be the new member of the family. He'll have a little sister to look after, who he can teach all the stuff he knows and who can rely on him the way his Aunt Thea relied on his dad.

Every time his Aunt Thea would relay him with stories about her younger years growing up with a big brother, William couldn't help but anticipate the same thing with his baby sister.

That's why they're on this little family vacation. It's gonna be the last one they're gonna have before a new member of the family joins them. Felicity insisted they do something before the baby comes, a whole weekend where it'll be just the three of them. It's also a way for her to show William that he'll still be a priority in the family. Even though by now William knows that he's part of the family, he still appreciates the gesture.

Besides, it's not like he'd turn down a week-long trip to the beach. 

The two stayed silent for a moment as they basked in the changing colors of the sky. It's just the two of them right now as Oliver went out to buy food for them.

As Felicity took sips of her tea, the blanket draped around her fell off her shoulder and William, once again, caught a glimpse of the discoloration on her shoulder through her tank top.

"What happened to that?" he asked before he could stop himself.

"Hm?" Felicity looks over her shoulder at where he was pointing at. "Oh, that?"

"Yeah...have you always had that?"

"Huh...yeah I guess it's been a while since I’ve had that. It's been, wow, seven years now?"

"Seven years? What happened?"

"It's my scar!" she says with a proud smile. "My very first scar. And the only visible one."

Despite Felicity's cheerful tone, a flash of concern washes over him. 

Scars are not that uncommon in their family. His father is certainly littered with them. He's seen a couple on his Aunt Thea and the same with his Uncle Diggle and Uncle Roy. He knows the lives that his family lives and often that includes a physical reminder of what they went through. He's still not particularly happy with that aspect of their lives, but he's accepted it. Especially since he knows how many lives they save.

It still concerns him though, even more when that danger also affects Felicity. She is such a bright spot in their lives that it’s easy to forget that she’s also part of the dangerous world their family partakes in every night.

William knows the role she plays in their team; the importance of her place in their world. She’s literally the person who brings them home safely every night. He also knows that she’s safe in the bunker, far away from the danger. However, that doesn’t mean that she’s always in the bunker. He still remembers seeing Felicity in that island after it had blown up, filled with dirt and blood. She’s not completely hidden from danger.

That’s what concerns him a lot.

“Did you get that helping dad?”

“Yeah, kind of. I actually got this jumping in front of a bullet for Sara.”

“Who?”

“Sara Lance, you know, your Uncle Lance’s daughter?”

“Oh yeah, I think I met her once.”

It was during one of those times when he knew there was some sort of danger threatening their world and a group of superheroes got together, including his parents and Team Arrow, to save everyone. He briefly encountered a woman whom he definitely heard his step-mother describe as a ninja; the same girl who was in the picture on his Uncle Lance's desk. 

William didn't ask much questions at the time; he didn't really want to get involved with it at all. But the image of the daunting woman who gave him a wink when she passed by him flashed in his mind. 

"You jumped in front of a bullet?" His mind reels back to the information she had just given him.

"Yeah, pretty badass right." Felicity smirked proudly at him.

 _No, not badass_. Was what William wanted to yell. _How could she be happy about that?_

Okay, it is kind of impressive. He's always known Felicity's cool; ever since he first, officially, met her as this genius who saved his behind with his math homework. Then when he met his match on his Xbox with her, she became even more incredible in his eyes. 

He's even seen her work the computer at the bunker during the team's mission. He knows how dedicated she is in what they do. It's not that surprising to him that she would literally jump in front of a bullet to save someone. She certainly would do that for him and his father, and every member of their team really. 

But fact of the matter is, William doesn't like to think his step-mom hurt. Ever. 

Felicity always says that he takes after his father and this is one of the reasons why. Apparently, his over-protectiveness when it comes to her is very much like his father. But he's concerned; he didn’t' want Felicity to end up hurt like his mother. 

It's a fear he's slowly coming to grips with. He realized this during his first year living with his parents. On the anniversary of his mother's death, Star City was faced with another attack, one his parents had to fight against and one Felicity had to participate on the field. When he had found out she wasn't safe in the bunker, he had a panic attack and couldn't calm down until he saw her. 

Felicity has become a representation of home and safety for him. Whenever she’s around, it makes him feel like his life hasn’t been turned upside down. It’s not like he’s replacing the image of his mother with Felicity, he never saw her as a replacement. (And Felicity was also adamant that she didn’t want to replace Samantha in his life). She just easily became a part of his family like his dad.

But William also knows how brave Felicity is. He knows that she would do anything to protect the people she loves. That apparently includes jumping in front of a bullet for them.

“How did it happen?” he asks, trying to keep his voice even.

“We were chasing this bad guy; he called himself the Clock King.” She says with an eyeroll. “I know super lame, right? Anyways, I felt largely responsible for letting him get away the first time cause the guy was also a super genius on the computer, and I mean, that was my expertise you know?”

Yes, he does know. that’s one of the first things he found out about her. That’s pretty much the very first thing his father told him about her; that’s she’s a literal genius.

“I was also going through some…” Felicity continues with a sigh. “Well let’s just say things were starting to shift with the team at the time and I was feeling left out so I also wanted to prove my worth. That’s why I lured the Clock King to a destination and tried to confront him myself. When your dad found out, he and your Uncle Dig and Sara came to my backup. Sara and I chased after the Clock King and when he pointed a gun at her, I just reacted." 

William purses his lips, letting the information process. He knew it must have been something serious for this to happen. People just don’t jump in front of a bullet for no reason. Still, it makes him upset to know she was hurt.

He thinks back to the story again. He doesn’t always ask for specifics about what they do, and certainly not about their past as a vigilante team. In his mind, the less he knows, the less he has to worry. But this certainly was an informative story.

“Why were you feeling left out?” he asks.

“Well…” she shrugs. “Because the team started to grow, and I didn’t think I was bringing anything to the plate.”

“What do you mean? Dad says you’re the brains of the operation.”

“I know that now, but back then… I wasn’t always as confident as I am. For so long it was just your dad, Uncle Dig and I. We all knew our place on the team. But then our team started to grow. Your Uncle Roy joined us and then Sara… I was so intimidated by her. She was so gorgeous and so badass. She can basically kill anyone with a flick of a finger and she knew basic science that can help with our mission. Whereas I was bested on the one aspect that I was really good at by a man who called himself the Clock King.”

Felicity let out a snort at the name.

“But you are so much than just the computers.” He protested. He knew that’s her expertise, but there is so much that Felicity brings to the team.

“I know that honey, but I was a different person back then. I didn’t really think I had much to offer other than my technical prowess.” She smiles at him. “And… your dad and Sara also started dating which added to my insecurities, not that I was ready to admit it at that time.”

William’s eyes widen. “What?! Dad was with someone else?” He didn’t know what was more unsettling, the fact that his step-mom got shot at or that his dad was with someone else.

Felicity chuckles at the incredulous expression on his face. “Oh honey, it’s a good thing you don’t look up old headlines of your father, otherwise you’ll be in for a rude awakening.”

He shook his head, ridding of the images. He knows his father is no saint and he knows that he was with girls other than Felicity. The fact that he exists proves that. It’s just hard to picture him with anyone else other than his step-mom as the two of them have always been solid in his eyes.

“It’s just weird to think.” He admits with a grimace. “I always just thought that you and dad were together since you two met.”

“In a way we were.” She shrugs. “We were partners, always. But it took us a really long time to admit it was anything more than friendship. And an even longer time to cement our future together. Your Uncle Dig wasn’t kidding about us being stubborn.”

It makes sense now. His Uncle Diggle always made little comments here and there on his parents benefit whenever they were being extra lovey-dovey to each other.

“So, you say this was seven years ago?” he asks, gesturing to her scar. “How long have you and dad known each other at the time?”

“About two years.” She smiles at the memory. “He was still the Arrow back then and we were still operating in the foundry.”

“The foundry? Where was that?”

“It was under the club your Aunt Thea use to run. Well, it use to be your dad’s, but as you probably know, he didn’t have much knack for business.”

William chuckles, knowing exactly how much his father detests anything to do with business. Whenever Felicity’s doing paperwork at home, he always avoids being around it, or even try to pry Felicity away from it. He’s a much better politician than a businessman.

“So, you weren’t always operating in the bunker?”

“No, we moved to the bunker when the foundry was compromised. Plus, we needed the extra space once the team grew even more.”

“And is that the only scar you’ve had since working with my dad?”

Felicity grows a bit somber. “The only visible one, yes.”

“You said that before; what does that mean?”

“It means that this job isn’t safe and I’m not always protected by the walls of the bunker.” She says delicately.

“I know you sometimes have no choice but to go out in the field. But dad’s always there to protect you.”

“Yes, he is. He will do everything in his power to protect me, William. Just like I will for him.”

“But you still get hurt.”

“Yeah, hazards of the job really. But, with those other times, I was able to get them properly treated.”

“Properly treated?”

“Meaning your dad got his way and took me to the hospital to get my wounds treated, which means I get a nice, clean cut that disappears through time.”

“But this one didn’t.” he points to the scar on his shoulder.

“No, it didn’t. I didn’t want it to.”

“Why?”

“Because it was my first scar.” She says proudly, looking back on her shoulder once again. “It made me feel like I was part of the team.”

“But you’ve always been part of the team. Uncle Diggle said they weren’t a team until you came along.”

“That’s true, yes. But in my mind, this just solidified it.” she says simply. “It doesn’t make sense really, and in my head I know that. But I’m also very proud of it, despite how painful it was. I saved my friend that night, why wouldn’t I be proud of that?”

It still doesn’t sit well with William that his step-mom got hurt, despite how long ago it was. It especially doesn’t sit well that she’s still vulnerable to that kind of hurt. But he also recognizes how amazing and how truly brave she is.

That is Felicity Smoak to the core. She will do everything she can to protect and save her friends and family.

“I get it, I think.” He nods. “Dad always kisses it.”

“He does?”

“Yeah, you don’t notice.”

“No.” she looks back on her shoulder again, her face contemplative.

“He does it a lot.”

“Huh.”

“I think dad’s also proud of that scar.”

She smiles and looks back at him. “Yeah, I guess so.”

William returns the smile and scoots over on the bench, resting his head on her shoulder. Felicity immediately places her arms around him, pulling him closer and the two watched as the sun continues to set.

He may not have the ability to shield his step-mother from the dangers of the world, but he also knows she’s strong and capable enough to take care of herself.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked this. Kudos and comments are always welcome!
> 
> If you want to say hi, or give me a prompt, come to my tumblr: [bokayjunkie](http://bokayjunkie.tumblr.com/)


End file.
